The Los Angeles Dodgers continued what has been a historic offseason with the reported signing of Teoscar Hernàndez to a one-year, $23.5 million contract. The 31-year-old fills the need for a right-handed hitting outfielder, which had been the team’s focus in recent weeks.
Hernàndez joins Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow as notable acquisitions for the Dodgers since the end of the 2023. The club also re-signed Jason Heyward and Joe Kelly, and acquired Manuel Margot in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Dodgers have committed nearly $1.2 billion to land the aforementioned players, but there is still some work to be done before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training next month.
During a recent episode of “The Baseball Insiders Podcast,” Robert Murray said the Dodgers have their sights on adding another starting pitcher, and possibly a shortstop and closer as well:
“And to my knowledge, the Dodgers are not done yet. They still have to go out and get another starting pitcher, a shortstop, if they want to get a closer as well, they could. They can explore a lot of different things, and I’m curious to see what they do next.”
Murray added he is confident the Dodgers will remain aggressive in finding roster upgrades:
“Their foot is still going to be on the gas pedal. I feel decently confident about that.”
It was previously reported that the Dodgers are ramping up efforts to add another starting pitcher, even after the acquisitions of Yamamoto and Glasnow.
L.A. expressed interest in Lucas Giolito before he signed with the Boston Red Sox, and previously had been linked to Blake Snell and Shōta Imanaga this offseason. Both players appear to be long shots now and will likely receive bigger contracts elsewhere.
As for shortstop, the Dodgers have maintained their confidence that Gavin Lux will be able to get back on track after missing the entire 2023 season while recovering from knee surgery.
However, the team could pursue an upgrade at the shortstop position and have been connected to the likes of Willy Adames, Bo Bichette and Jorge Polanco.
Will Dodgers add closer?
The Dodgers bullpen appears to be set for the 2024 season, but there have been rumblings that the team could try signing Josh Hader or acquiring Emmanuel Clase from the Cleveland Guardians.
Evan Phillips is currently projected to be the Dodgers closer next season, but he could return to a fireman role in the event that the team adds a high-profile relief pitcher.
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